1 A grippa said to Paul, “You may speak for yourself.” Then Paul stretched out his hand, and made his defense.

Agrippa said to Paul, “You may now speak for yourself.” Paul lifted his hand and started to talk,

2 “ I think myself happy, King Agrippa, that I am to make my defense before you today concerning all the things that I am accused by the Jews,

“King Agrippa, the Jews have said many things against me. I am happy to be able to tell you my side of the story.

3 e specially because you are expert in all customs and questions which are among the Jews. Therefore I beg you to hear me patiently.

You know all about the Jewish ways and problems. So I ask you to listen to me until I have finished.

4 “ Indeed, all the Jews know my way of life from my youth up, which was from the beginning among my own nation and at Jerusalem;

“All the Jews know about my life from the time I was a boy until now. I lived among my own people in Jerusalem.

5 h aving known me from the first, if they are willing to testify, that after the strictest sect of our religion I lived a Pharisee.

If they would tell what they know, they would say that I lived the life of a proud religious law-keeper. I was in the group of proud religious law-keepers who tried to obey every law.

6 N ow I stand here to be judged for the hope of the promise made by God to our fathers,

“And now I am on trial here because I trust the promise God made to our fathers.

7 w hich our twelve tribes, earnestly serving night and day, hope to attain. Concerning this hope I am accused by the Jews, King Agrippa!

This promise is what our twelve family groups of the Jewish nation hope to see happen. They worship God day and night. King Agrippa, it is because of this hope that they are saying things against me.

8 W hy is it judged incredible with you, if God does raise the dead?

Why do you think it is hard to believe that God raises people from the dead?

9 “ I myself most certainly thought that I ought to do many things contrary to the name of Jesus of Nazareth.

“I used to think I should work hard against the name of Jesus of Nazareth.

10 T his I also did in Jerusalem. I both shut up many of the saints in prisons, having received authority from the chief priests, and when they were put to death I gave my vote against them.

I did that in Jerusalem. I put many of the followers in prison. The head religious leaders gave me the right and the power to do it. Then when the followers were killed, I said it was all right.

11 P unishing them often in all the synagogues, I tried to make them blaspheme. Being exceedingly enraged against them, I persecuted them even to foreign cities.

I beat them and tried to make them speak against God in all the Jewish places of worship. In my fight against them, I kept going after them even into cities in other countries.

12 “ Whereupon as I traveled to Damascus with the authority and commission from the chief priests,

“When I was going to Damascus to do this, I had the right and the power from the head religious leaders to make it hard for the followers.

13 a t noon, O king, I saw on the way a light from the sky, brighter than the sun, shining around me and those who traveled with me.

I was on the road at noon. King Agrippa, I saw a light from heaven brighter than the sun. It was shining around me and the men with me.

14 W hen we had all fallen to the earth, I heard a voice saying to me in the Hebrew language, ‘Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me? It is hard for you to kick against the goads.’

We all fell to the ground. Then I heard a voice speaking to me in the Jewish language, ‘Saul, Saul, why are you working so hard against Me? You hurt yourself by trying to hurt Me.’

15 “ I said, ‘Who are you, Lord?’ “He said, ‘I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting.

I said, ‘Who are You, Lord?’ And He said, ‘I am Jesus, the One you are working against.

16 B ut arise, and stand on your feet, for I have appeared to you for this purpose: to appoint you a servant and a witness both of the things which you have seen, and of the things which I will reveal to you;

Get up. Stand on your feet. I have chosen you to work for Me. You will tell what you have seen and you will say what I want you to say. This is the reason I have allowed you to see Me.

17 d elivering you from the people, and from the Gentiles, to whom I send you,

I will keep you safe from the Jews and from the people who are not Jews. I am sending you to these people.

18 t o open their eyes, that they may turn from darkness to light and from the power of Satan to God, that they may receive remission of sins and an inheritance among those who are sanctified by faith in me.’

You are to open their eyes. You are to turn them from darkness to light. You are to turn them from the power of Satan to the power of God. In this way, they may have their sins forgiven. They may have what is given to them, along with all those who are set apart for God by having faith in Me.’

19 “ Therefore, King Agrippa, I was not disobedient to the heavenly vision,

“King Agrippa, I obeyed what I saw from heaven.

20 b ut declared first to them of Damascus, at Jerusalem, and throughout all the country of Judea, and also to the Gentiles, that they should repent and turn to God, doing works worthy of repentance.

First I told what I saw to those in Damascus and then in Jerusalem. I told it through all the country of Judea. I even preached to the people who are not Jews that they should be sorry for their sins and turn from them to God. I told them they should do things to show they are sorry for their sins.

21 F or this reason the Jews seized me in the temple, and tried to kill me.

“That is why the Jews took hold of me in the house of God and tried to kill me.

22 H aving therefore obtained the help that is from God, I stand to this day testifying both to small and great, saying nothing but what the prophets and Moses said would happen,

God has helped me. To this day I have told these things to the people who are well-known and to those not known. I have told only what the early preachers and Moses said would happen.

23 h ow the Christ must suffer, and how, by the resurrection of the dead, he would be first to proclaim light both to these people and to the Gentiles.”

It was that Christ must suffer and be the first to rise from the dead. He would give light to the Jews and to the other nations.”

24 A s he thus made his defense, Festus said with a loud voice, “Paul, you are crazy! Your great learning is driving you insane!”

As Paul was speaking for himself, Festus cried out in a loud voice, “Paul, you are crazy! All your learning keeps you from thinking right!”

25 B ut he said, “I am not crazy, most excellent Festus, but boldly declare words of truth and reasonableness.

Paul said, “Most respected Festus, I am not crazy. I am speaking the truth!

26 F or the king knows of these things, to whom also I speak freely. For I am persuaded that none of these things is hidden from him, for this has not been done in a corner.

The king knows about all this. I am free to speak to him in plain words. Nothing I have said is new to him. These things happened where everyone saw them.

27 K ing Agrippa, do you believe the prophets? I know that you believe.”

King Agrippa, do you believe the writings of the early preachers? I know that you believe them.”

28 A grippa said to Paul, “With a little persuasion are you trying to make me a Christian?”

Then Agrippa said to Paul, “In this short time you have almost proven to me that I should become a Christian!”

29 P aul said, “I pray to God, that whether with little or with much, not only you, but also all that hear me today, might become such as I am, except for these bonds.”

Paul said, “My prayer to God is that you and all who hear me today would be a Christian as I am, only not have these chains!”

30 T he king rose up with the governor, and Bernice, and those who sat with them.

King Agrippa and Festus and Bernice and those who sat with them got up.

31 W hen they had withdrawn, they spoke to one another, saying, “This man does nothing worthy of death or of bonds.”

As they left the courtroom, they said to each other, “This man has done nothing for which he should be kept in prison or be put to death.”

32 A grippa said to Festus, “This man might have been set free if he had not appealed to Caesar.”

Agrippa told Festus, “This man could go free if he had not asked to be sent to Caesar.”